Soldiers
by Beanzjellly
Summary: Ace and her friend is looking for a new home. After wandering about alone for some time, they come across Chicago. What will they find in the city?
1. Chapter 1

Trudging around barren wastelands of towns, and ruins of cities is what we have been doing for the past 3 years. I think.  
It's getting harder to keep track of time the longer we are out here.  
Survival has never been a problem for us. Having a reduced sense of fear combined with military training makes everything easier. A personal arsenal of weapons might have been a help as well.

When we were kids we would always use the phrase "us against the world". We just didn't expect it to be exactly that. I can't explain how we ended up in Illinois. We don't have maps or anything to help with our directions. We've just been wandering from city to city, scavenging and having the occasional roof over our heads.

The sight in front of me breaks my train of thoughts.  
"Jax" I call out to her. "Come take a look."  
She walks over to me, her backpack slung over her shoulder just like mine.  
"Whoah," She exclaims. "That's one hell of a construction."  
"You could say that again. We'll need to climb it to get to the city up ahead." It's a wall, or a fence. Not really sure which word would describe it best.

By the time we reach the monstrous construction, the sun has already set. I knew keeping a folding grappling hook would come in handy one day. Tying it to the thick rope Jax always kept, before throwing it. Let me tell you, the dark doesn't help with our aim. After several throws, the hook finally sticks.

"About time!" Jax exclaims happily. "Up we go!"  
I can't help but laugh at her excitement. "Only you would be happy about doing this." I tell her as I grab my stuff from the ground.  
"I know you like it too. If you didn't, you wouldn't have been carrying around that hook of yours." She tells me, sending me a smirk over her shoulder and I can't even deny it.  
"Hey, let's make a bet." I tell Jax as I'm about to start climbing. "If there's people here, I get your chocolate ration. If not, you get mine."

She ponders on my words for a few seconds before nodding. "You're on."

Grabbing the rope and planting my feet on the wall, I climb my way up. Peeking over the edge to see if there's any sign of life, I let out a breath of relief when I can't find any. "It's clear." I call out to Jax and she starts climbing. When she gets to the top, I give her my hand to help pull her up.  
"Looks like you're about to lose that bet Ace."  
I can almost hear the smirk she definitely has on her face.  
"We're-" My words are cut off when I feel something cold and hard pressed against the back of my head. I look over at Jax and I can see the outline of a person behind her. 

I'm pretty sure the normal human reaction to having a gun pointed at your head would be fear, but instead a variety of ways to disarm a person runs through my brain.  
Several floodlights turning on interrupts my thoughts. Blinking away the blinding feeling, I look over at Jax to see that she's in the same situation as me. Her eyes calculating as she glances over my shoulder to the person behind me. 

The man behind her is tall, dark-skinned with cropped hair. His clothes are black, militant and sturdy looking.  
Disarming one person with a gun would have been an easy feat. But two, not so much.

"Well, fuck." Jax seems to have come to the same conclusion as she mutters the words just as I do.

"Who are you?" The man behind Jax questions us. His voice is loud and authoritative, leaving no room to deny an answer. "Factionless?"

My brows furrow at his last word. "I'm Ace. And what the hell is a factionless?"  
"I'm Jax. And I'm also curious, what the hell is a factionless? You mean like homeless?"  
"They don't look factionless." The man behind me says. His voice is deep, and sounds bored yet it still manages to send pleasant shivers down my spine.

"Then where did you come from? By your clothes I would say dauntless, but I've never seen any of you before." The man behind Jax questions.

As if on cue, we both stretch our arm out, pointing towards the wastelands. "That way."

The silence that follows and the raised eyebrow from the man behind Jax indicates that they don't believe us. "There's nothing out there."  
"Correction, there's _not_ _much_ out there." Jax replies.

"And why should we believe you?" The voice behind me sounds. I roll my eyes, already bored with the questioning even if their curiosity is understandable. "Unless you have a lie detector test, I guess you'll just have to take our word for it." My words sounds annoyed.

A large hand grabs my shoulder and spins me around.  
"Watch how you speak to me." He sneers, glaring down at me. And I can finally get a good look at the man who's been holding a gun to my head. He's alot taller than me. My head reaching somewhere along his chest. His hair is neatly styled, slicked back on top and cropped short on the sides. His featuers are sharp and his blue grey eyes seems cold and calculating. His eyebrow piercing is gleaming in the light, and he has bold blocks tattooed down his neck.

His clothing is much like the man behind Jax, sturdy and militant looking.  
My eyes meet his, and I keep his gaze not giving him an answer. His hand is still clamped down on my shoulder as he turns his gaze to the other man. "Let's bring them to candor."


	2. Chapter 2

Candor?

I know the definition of the word, but these men are speaking about it like it's a place. Or people.  
Guns against our backs, they grab our stuff and start leading us down from the fence. " _What do you think they mean by Candor?_ " Jax whispers to me.  
" _Not sure. Must be something with getting the truth out of us. I don't think they believe us._ " I reply to her. " _And by the way, you owe me your chocolate ration."_ I add on with a smug look on my face.  
" _Dammit Ace! Can't we share it?"_  
" _Don't think so sweetheart. It's mine now."_

"If you ladies are done talking about chocolate, get in." The dark-skinned man behind Jax says, looking rather unimpressed as he opens the back to an armored vehicle. It reminds me a lot of the ones we had on the base that were used for raids, or to transfer criminals.

We're not criminals. Well, technically. If this was the old world, we would have ended up in prison a long, long time ago.

"Yes sir." Jax and I straighten our backs and reply at the same time, as if on reflex as we get in the truck.

Mr. Mountain as I have decided to call the man who had a gun to my head, takes our stuff and joins us in the back. There's a metal bench on each side in the back of the truck, and once we sit down Mr. Mountain cuffs us to the bench.

"Is this really necessary?" I question him with a raised brow, gesturing to the handcuffs. It's not like we can't get out of it, but I'd rather not go through dislocating my own thumbs.  
"Just a precaution." He sneers back at me. Had my brain had all its normal functions, I would most likely have been intimidated by his harsh looks and cold tone. I know Jax would feel the same.

"Can we ask some questions?" Jax asks him. I nod along, still curious about some of the words they used.  
"Doesn't mean I will give you answers." He answers. Even with the bored tone, his voice is nice to listen to.

"What's Candor and Dauntless?" I ask, just as Jax voices her question as well.  
"What's factionless?"

Mr. Mountain lets out a deep sigh, looking like he's already done with this conversation. But to my surprise, it's the dark-skinned man who answers our questions.

"Candor and Dauntless are two of the five factions. The factionless are those who have been either kicked out or left their faction."  
"No more questions." Mr. Mountain says. "Let's see what you have in your backpacks." And with that he opens my backpack and empties the contents on the floor before doing the same with Jax's.

There's some basic survival gear. Flint and steel, food rations, medical supplies, water canteens, space blankets, a change of clothes and a few personal hygiene items. Then there's the items that makes Mr. Mountain's eyebrows shoot up, his piercing nearly disappearing in his hairline. Two handguns, extra ammo, hunting knife, butterfly knife, an mp3 player, some throwing knives and my grappling hook is laying on the floor mixed with our stuff.

He just stares us down, his look alone demanding that we explain.  
"Survival 101?" Jax states, but it comes out more as a question. He doesn't answer, but keeps glancing between us.

Now that I think of it, we must be quite the sight. Jax has black waist long hair that falls down her back in loose waves, brown eyes and her figure is slightly curvy, and she has tan skin. My hair is red, or strawberry blonde as Jax always calls it and it's the same length as hers. I have green eyes and pale skin. I'm 5"4 and Jax is 5"7. Our clothing is basic combat boots, fingerless gloves, cargo pants, thin woolen sweaters and leather jackets.

But right now, our hair is tangled messes, we're muddy and our clothes have several holes and tears in them.

* * *

Jax leans her head on my shoulder, and I lean my head against hers as I close my eyes. The exhaustion after todays events is finally catching up with us.

"Ace?" Jax questions me drowsily. "Mm'yeah?" I reply not even bothering to look down at her.  
"You need a shower. You stink."  
I can't help but snort out loud at that. "You kidding me? I'm pretty sure your hair has its own ecosystem." I tell her. Which is not far from the truth, I'm pretty sure I spotted a couple of bugs in there.

Our conversation is interrupted when the car stops. "We're here." Mr. Mountain says as he goes to unlock our handcuffs.  
As we get out of the truck, I look around. "Huh, we're in Chicago." Jax gives me a questioning look, so I point to the building in front of us. "That's the Merchandise mart. Or used to be anyways."  
"Max, we need to search them." Mr. Mountain calls out to the dark-skinned man. Max walks over to us and takes a look in the back of the truck. He turns to us with a raised brow, "Arms out and legs apart." He says before searching Jax. Mr. Mountain does the same to me.  
After a very awkward minute, they find two daggers each that we kept in our boots.

"If you got more weapons hidden anywhere, I suggest giving them up now." Max demands.  
"Nope, that was the last ones." Jax replies.  
"Let's get this done. I'd like to be back at dauntless before morning." Mr. Mountain says, receiving a nod from Max as they lead us inside.

"I'll go get him" Max says as he walks off. Before walking around a corner, he turns back to us "Don't let them out of your sight Eric."  
He doesn't. While we're waiting for Max to return, he doesn't take his eyes off us, and we stand still as statues.

* * *

When Max returns, there's an Asian looking man with him. He looks to be around 5"9, and has black hair. His expression is serious, but his eyes are kind. He's wearing a black suit with a white shirt, and has a metal briefcase with him.

He stops in front of us "My name is Jack Kang." He introduces himself with a slight nod of his head. "If you would follow me to my office please." With that he turns around and we follow him with Eric and Max right behind us.

* * *

His office is neat, there's a large desk with an office chair and two chairs in front of it. "Take a seat." Jack gestures to me and Jax as he goes to stand behind his desk. "I will be asking you some questions," He tells us, opening the metal briefcase and picks up an injector with a clear liquid inside. "This is the truth serum." He states, holding the injector up for us to see. "While under effect, being dishonest will be very painful." He informs us.

After sharing a look with Jax, I turn to look at Jack. "I'll go first."

He walks over to me and says, "May the truth set you free." And with that, he injects the serum into my neck.

The first thing I notice is that my mind feels foggy, the second is that I'm really warm.  
"What is your name?" Jack asks. "Aidan Carter Evans, but I go by Ace." I reply instantly.  
"How old are you?" He questions, turning to look at me.  
"17 or 18, I don't remember the exact date of my birthday." I answer.  
"Where are your parents?" I can't help but feel slightly bitter as I reply,  
"I don't know. They sold me as soon as I was born."  
Jack's eyebrows furrow at my answer. "Sold you?"  
"To a military experiment." I say as I take off the glove on my right hand to show him my wrist where "TS23890ACE" is tattooed. "Test subject number 23890, Aidan Carter Evans." I tell him.  
"And what did they experiment on?"  
"They wanted to create super soldiers. Extra speed, strength, agility. And no fear."  
"How did the experiment work?" Jack inquires.

"At first, they wanted soldiers that wouldn't be able to process fear, so they tried to completely remove the amygdale from the brain of the subjects. Eventually they realized that it was impossible, since the subjects kept dying. So, they found a way to modify the amygdale instead." I inform him, my hand subconsciously going to the scar at the base of my skull.

"What about the extra speed and strength?"  
"They developed some kind of steroid. The subjects would gain muscle at an incredible speed, they were faster and more agile. But their metabolism skyrocketed, and they couldn't find a way to neutralize it, so they literally starved to death." Jack stares at me for a moment after that, something akin to pity in his eyes. "Thank you for your candor."

"What?" Eric demands, his tone displeased. "That can't be all the questions."  
"I believe Miss Evans have answered enough for now." Jack replies as he picks up the other injector and turns to Jax. After sharing a quick look with me, she nods her consent and lets him inject her with the serum.  
"May the truth set you free."

I look at Jax, her gaze becoming unfocused, and drops of sweat are gathering on her forehead.  
"What is your name?" Jack questions her.  
"Jack Allen. But I go by Jax." She replies.  
"How old are you?"  
Jax's brows furrow, "Same as Ace, we never celebrated our birthdays."  
"And were you a part of the same experiment?"  
"Yes." She answers, taking off her glove to show the almost identical tattoo "TS23889JA"  
"What else did you do there while you weren't being … modified?"  
"Training. Close combat, weaponry, strategy, survival training and escape arts were our main focus." She informs him.

"How did you get out?" Jack questions, walking to stand right before us.

"About 4 years ago, the experiment was shut down. The guards were ordered to eliminate us, but a military squad got us out of there before it could happen. We were only 5 survivors from the experiment and we got spread out to different bases, but the general let me and Ace stay with him." As Jax explains, I glance over to Eric and Max. They're listening intently to every word.

"What happened then?" Jack asks her.  
"We stayed with him and his squad for about a year, adapted to the new surroundings. Pops and his squad were only supposed to be gone a few days on a mission, but they never came back. So me and Ace packed up one of the armored vehicles, and we've been going from city to city since then." I take Jax's hand and give it a comforting squeeze as she finishes.

"Just one more question Miss Allen. What happened to the world out there?" Jack inquires.  
"We don't know. We were never allowed access to the outside world at the facility. When we got out, pops never told us what happened. I'm not even sure if he knew. But the major cities were in ruins, and the people were just… gone."  
"Thank you for your candor." Jack says, "Now if I could have a word with Eric and Max." He says, gesturing for them to follow him out the door.

As soon as the door closes me and Jax bolts out of the chairs and goes to sit on the floor instead, using each other as pillows. "So tired." I mumble, as I snuggle closer to Jax.  
"Mhm, me too. Nap time…" She trails off, falling asleep. I follow only a few seconds after.

* * *

The sound of the door slamming shut wakes me up. I blink several times gaining back focus to see Eric, Max and Jack walk into the room again.

"Jax get up." I say as I shake her lightly.  
"No. Go away." She mumbles, not even opening her eyes. So I pinch her arm. "Ow, what the hell Ace?!" Not giving her a reply, I stand up and drag her with me.

Max takes a step towards us. "We will discuss with the other faction leaders how to proceed from here. But for now, you're coming with us to dauntless."


	3. Chapter 3

Jax slept pretty much the entire way. I would have done the same, hadn't it been for Eric's curious gaze lingering on me. I could almost hear the gears turning around in his head.

My eyes meet his, and I let out a deep sigh. "What?"  
His reply is a raised brow. I roll my eyes at him, "You have questions. Ask."  
"How do you respond to fear? Do you have any fears at all?" Eric asks me, managing to look both bored and slightly interested at the same time.

"Nobody is completely fearless. I have fears just like everyone else, and every other human emotion. My sense of fear is just reduced, making my fight or flight mode… defect I guess you could say. Sometimes it's a blessing, others it just leads me to make stupid decisions."  
He seems to process the information before he fires his next question.  
"What kind of stupid decisions?"

"Like rushing head first into situations that are likely to get us killed."  
Jax mumbles, her head perched on my shoulder.

"I thought you were asleep." I say, looking down at her.

"Jax?"

I shake my head, smiling fondly at her antics, listening to her even breaths over the sounds of the engine.

"I'm failing to see a downside here. Soldiers are trained for situations like that." Eric's words make me look up at him.  
"Yes, but they're also trained to wait for orders. Say if Jax got herself in trouble, I wouldn't hesitate to go after her even if being told not to. To us that's loyalty, but to others it would be insubordination."

I don't get to say more as the truck stops.

The dauntless compound reminds me of a huge cave. After several twists and turns through narrow hallways made from stone with sparse lighting, and down a set of metal stairs, we enter what seems to be a cafeteria. It's nearly deserted, but that doesn't surprise me considering it's the middle of the night.

"You'll get a tour later. Right now, we'll get some food in you." Max says before leading us to a table. "Stay here." With one final warning look, he walks off.  
Eric disappeared sometime on our way down here, walking off without so much as a word. I have a feeling that's normal for him since Max didn't seem at all bothered by it.

Jax and I sit in comfortable silence, taking in our new surroundings before Max returns a couple of minutes later with two plates and two bottles of water.  
"It's the only thing we have right now, considering what time it is." He says as he places the food in front of us. I have never been so happy to see a plain burger in my life. I share a happy look with Jax before the food and water is scarfed down in record time.

Max's eyebrows are raised as he gives us an incredulous look. "That long since you've had a meal?"  
"No. Just that long since we've had a meal that doesn't have a five-year long expiration date. And thanks for the food." I reply, feeling myself getting drowsy.  
"I think I can die happy now." Jax groans out, letting her head fall down on the metal table with a slam. "Ow."

Max just shakes his head with something that almost resembles a smile. "For tonight you'll get to take a shower and rest. I'd like to assess your abilities in the morning." He says before looking towards the entrance of the cafeteria and we follow his line of sight.

Eric along with another man is making their way towards us, each carrying a small bag. "This is Dominic." He says gesturing to the newcomer. Dominic is tall and muscular, but more on the lean side compared to Eric. He has spiky black hair, brown eyes and slightly tanned skin.

"So you're the outsiders." He says with a smirk, looking between me and Jax. "I wasn't sure what I expected, but it was definitely not this."

"Where's Tori?" Max interrupts as he stands up.  
"No room available. She sent with enough stuff for now, said she'd be by with more in the morning." Eric says, looking less than pleased. "The girls will have to stay with us."  
Max sighs heavily, "Fine. Ace, you go with Eric. Jax with Dom."  
"Wait, we have to separate?" I ask, not liking the idea in the slightest.  
"We haven't been away from each other in years." Jax adds in.  
"They are neighbors. I'm sure you can handle that." Max says before turning on his heel, walking out of the room.

"Well, this way ladies." Dominic says, a smirk still plastered on his face as he gestures towards a set of stairs.

Eric's apartment is large. "So, what is your position here?" I question Eric as I look around. There's a decently sized kitchen to the far east side with a small island separating it from the rest of the room. The living room is sparse, with a dark gray two-seat couch and a black sofa table. There's a large bookcase leaning against the north wall, filled to the brim with different books and binders. Other than that, the room is completely void of any personal items that might give me more information about the giant of a man standing behind me.

"I'm a leader." Eric replies not even bothering to look at me. He walks over to the west wall and opens one of the two doors there. "Bathroom is through here."

I can feel my face light up at the thought of a shower and a set of clean clothes. Not stopping to think that it might be rude, I all but run past him; grabbing the bag he holds out for me then slam the door shut.

The bathroom is much like the rest of his apartment, clean and sparse. There's a counter with a sink that holds a single bar of soap, a toothbrush and toothpaste placed in a cup. A cupboard that I'm tempted to snoop through hangs beside the mirror above the sink.

Taking a look in the mirror, I cringe at my reflection. My normally silky red waves lay in a tangled mess on top of my head. There are streaks of mud all over my face, and my clothes are ready for the trashcan.

I rush to open the bag Eric handed me, and feel relief washing over me at finding everything I need to freshen up. I strip off my clothes and throw them in a heap on the floor before stepping into the shower.  
I let out a yelp as the frigid water hit me, jumping out of the shower and nearly stumbling over my own feet.

I forgot that the water takes a few seconds to heat up. Quickly brushing my teeth before grabbing the shampoo, soap and washcloth, I step into the shower again.

Bliss. Pure and utter bliss is the only word I can use to describe what I'm feeling right now. The hot water soothing my aching muscles. The exhaustions from todays events hits me full force, so I quickly scrub off all the sweat and grime from my skin and wash my hair.

Stepping out of the bathroom, dressed in the soft black leggings and loose tank top Tori had provided, I spot Eric sitting on the couch, scrolling away on some flat device.

I walk over and sit down beside him, leaving as much space between us as I possibly can on a two-seater. "Thanks for letting me take a shower." I say, as I keep towel-drying my hair.  
Eric doesn't reply, nor does he look up from the device in his hands. I take this moment to study him more closely. His jacket has been lost sometime while I was in the shower, and he's left in a black t-shirt that's pulled taut over his muscles. He's handsome. Unbelievably so. My fingers itch to run across the maze-like pattern tattooed on his forearms, but also wanting to run them through his hair. I wonder if it is as soft as it looks. 

Back at the facility, interactions between boys and girls were punishable, unless it was for training. They always kept us separated, and those who broke that rule once, never did it again. Even after Jax and I got out there was no time for even thinking about romance. We had too much to catch up on and learn about the outside world and human interaction. It took pops over a month to teach us that the correct response to a hug, was not a punch in the face. And another month for us to not tense up, and reciprocate the hug.

I can feel sadness creeping over me, so I quickly shake the thoughts from my head and steer my focus back to Eric. Letting my eyes wander up his muscular arms to his broad shoulders and finally settling on his face, I nearly blush as I meet his steel-blue eyes. "You need to get some sleep, we've got a lot to cover tomorrow." He says, his tone and expression remaining impassive.

He stands up, walking in to what I'm guessing is his bedroom, returning shortly and hands me a pillow and a thick blanket. "Don't even think about trying to run off." With that he turns and retreats to his bedroom, closing the door behind him.


	4. Chapter 4

The couch is too soft. I ended up twisting and turning, trying to get comfortable before just giving up. So I threw my pillow on the couch, wrapped the blanket around myself and laid down on the hardwood floor.

Now I'm regretting that decision. My muscles are stiff and aches as I try to sit up. I wonder how Jax is doing. This is the first time in years we have spent more than an hour tops away from each other. Eric said to not run off, but he never said anything about not going to the neighboring apartment. It's still dark outside, so I stand up as quietly as I possibly can and walk over to his bedroom door.

Pressing my ear against it, I can hear Eric's deep, even breaths through the door. And the plotting begins.

The front door was a no-go. It locks from the inside by key, and I doubt Eric is stupid enough to leave it in here with me. I decide to check out the windows next, thanking whatever deity out there for the non-creaky hardwood floor. The windows in the livin room area doesn't open, so I head for the one above the kitchen counter. I almost do an internal happydance when I spot the handle. While listening for any sounds coming from the bedroom on the opposite side of the apartment, I move as stealthily as I can. Crawling up on the kitchen counter before opening the window slowly and peeking my head out.

There is a narrow ledge that seems to go around the building. Grabbing a hold of the windowsill, I carefully lower my feet to the ledge. Slowly turning towards Dominic's apartment, I'm about to take a step forward when large hands surround my wrists in a death grip and I freeze up. _Fuuuuck!_

"What the hell do you think you're doing?" Eric's voice is icy, I turn to look at him and almost wish I didn't. He's shirtless and his glare is lethal. Right now, I'm not sure if he wants to pull me in and yell at me, or just push me off the ledge and be done with the problem. "What did I say about running off?"

"I wasn't running off," I say, trying and failing to keep eye contact. "I just wanted to go see Jax."  
Not saying anything else, Eric reaches for me. Instead of just pulling me in by my arms, his large hands grab my waist and he pulls me inside again, placing me on the kitchen counter. My eyes wander down his body. From his broad shoulders to his toned pecks and abdominals. There's a light dusting of hair covering his chest, and a happytrail that disappears into a pair of black sweatpants slung dangerously low on his hips. The temptation to reach out for him is high. To feel every ridge of his muscle underneath my fingertips. Though that might be highly inappropriate, considering the situation.

I let my eyes drift up to his again, and his glare is still in place as he leans forward, placing his hands on either side of me. His face is so close to mine I can feel his minty breath against my skin. "I don't care what you want. When I tell you to do something, you listen! Got it?" I give a slight nod, still dazed from checking him out. "Got it."

Eric's eyes travel down my body before meeting my gaze again. "Good. Now put your boots on. We're getting a head start on today." 

What Eric meant about a head start, was taking me to the training room and having me run laps. I have a feeling that he's punishing me for my earlier escape attempt, but I suck it up and keep running.

When I approach Eric after my eighth lap, he turns to me with his impassive expression back in place. "Get in the ring." He says, and gestures to the elevated fighting mats.  
"Are we going to spar?" I question him while unlacing my boots, almost giddy at the thought of having someone other than Jax to fight with. "What are the rules?"

Eric takes off his own boots and step onto the mats and looks at me. "Normally it would be until one of us can't continue. But since we've got other things to do today; no cheap shots and no serious damage."

I can't stop the grin from spreading across my face. "I can live with that." I reply as I get in my stance. My feet shoulder width apart, my left foot slightly in front of my right one and one arm covering my abdomen while the other covers my chest and part of my face.

I know I'm at a disadvantage. Eric is literally twice my size, towering over me in both height and his ginormous muscles.

He strikes first, his fist coming towards my face. I duck before sidestepping, delivering my own punch to his side which he easily blocks. We circle each other a few times before I come at him. I send a left hook to his face followed by my right fist to his solar plexus. Eric blocks the first punch, but grunts as my fist connects with his abdomen. I quickly jump back again, raising my guard before he can retaliate. Though it doesn't help much. Before I can even register it, he's on me, sending e punch to my right side followed by one to my left. He slides his leg beneath mine, sending me tumbling down on the mat.

I groan, rolling over on my back before lifting my head. My grin is wide and I'm slightly out of breath as I look at him. Eric looks slightly surprised at my expression. "Let's go again!" 

We got in three more rounds of sparring before we got interrupted. Eric is sporting a nice bruise low on his cheek and a split lip. I'm sure my entire upper body is covered in bruises.  
I'm lying on the floor, trying to catch my breath, still in high spirits from our sparring when Jax and Dominic enters the training room.

I hear Jax before I see her. "AAAACEEE!"  
Still breathing heavily, I just raise my hand to wave at her. She looms over me, scanning my body with a worried expression. "Are you ok? Do I need to set something? Stitch you up again?"

"I'm fine Jax, now help me up." She does so, grabbing both my wrists and pulls me up.

"Oh, she got you good." I hear Dominic tell Eric, gesturing to his face.  
"Are you kidding me?" I say. "I'm covered in bruises!"  
Dominic raises his eyebrow at me. "You sound almost happy about that."  
"Of course I am! It's been ages since I've fought someone other than Jax, I loved every second of it."  
He chuckles in response. "Well, Max gave me a call since you didn't answer your phone." He says turning to Eric. "The girls need to be ready in an hour, he's summoned the faction leaders for a meeting."

A smirk grows on Eric's face and he looks at me with a faux happiness.

"Seems like we're gonna figure out what to do with you two now." 


End file.
